NE Future, Oil & Natural Gas
- Hueiyen Lanpao Editorial :: August 03 2015 -

The recent observation of experts that Mizoram is sitting on oil and natural gas reserves has only affirmed the belief that of the Northeast taken together is not only a region that has extracted monetary benefits from a benevolent Centre but also an area that could spur the collective developmental engine of the sub-continent.

The future of Northeastern States like Mizoram and Nagaland look bright if the current process of both extraction and exploration are executed in accordance with the developmental paradigms envisaged by the people of the regions themselves adjusting to the national and international trends.

Realizing this potential, the Geology and Mineral Resources Department Director H Lallenmawia stated that exploration activities by different national and international agencies are spread around 58.9 per cent of Mizoram’s total area.

Both ONGC and IOC together were already in the thick of extraction activity in around 5,340 square km area. The rest of the area has been shared between OIL, Suntera Resources Ltd, Shiv-Vani Oil Exploration, Naftogaz India Private Ltd, Reliance Energy Ltd, Reliance Natural Resources Ltd and Geopetrol International Inc. (French).

According to Lallenmawia, under the New Exploration Licencing Policy, Mizoram would get 12.5 per cent of wellhead price on crude oil and 10 per cent of wellhead price on natural gas as royalty.

The wellhead price is the wholesale price natural gas at their time of production, he informed.

The state will get 50 per cent share of the non-tax revenue against the production of oil and natural gas and the non-tax revenue is the recurring income earned by the Government from sources other than taxes.

In Nagaland too oil exploration resumed after a gap of almost two decades in July 2014 in Wokha District. The resumption was launched by Nagaland Chief Minister TR Zeliang.

The Metropolitan Oil and Gas Private Limited had been awarded the licence to explore 20 million tonnes of hydrocarbon reserves in Wokha District, bordering Assam.

However, it may be recalled ONGC had been asked to stop its operations in May 1994 after it began oil production in 1981.

ONGC had begun oil explorations in the Wokha Lower Range Region in 1973.

ONGC had estimated that Changpang Village in Wokha District alone had 20 million tonnes of hydrocarbon reserves.

Between 1973 and 1994, it is estimated that ONGC had extracted 1.5 million tonnes of oil during trial production but only Rs.33 crore was paid to the Nagaland government.

With the Narendra Modi led Government at the Centre attempting to push forth its Act East Policy in the region, it was time for the Government of India to rethink its strategy as partners in development with the region and not just a benign big brother who loves to control all national assets.